The Road Not Taken

It is easy for people to cut corners when the final prize is of no importance to them. Usually, however, as the result grows in importance, so does the effort put out by the individual. In the long run, the extra effort really does make a huge difference. In, “The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost, the diverging road symbolizes the different lengths people will go for something they long for. From the beginning of the poem, Frost is forced to make a decision because the “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood” (line 1). It was easy to tell that one of the roads had been taken far more than the other. The road that had been traveled more represented the easy way out or the effort required to barely skim by. On the other hand, the road that was almost …show more content…
It is a fond reminiscence, and one that will never be forgotten because of the impact it had on Frost’s life. Frost “Took the [road] less traveled by, / And that has made all the difference” (lines 24-25). Unfortunately, the poem is open-ended leading readers to believe that “the final stanza, too sudden to be credible, is overtly the least trustworthy in the poem” (Bloom “Robert Frost” 2). The difference is so mysterious because Frost never really gives a reason as to why the road he took was so special. There is no evidence to back up Frost’s final stanza, which is why many people have an issue with it. The reader is expected to come up with their own conclusion as to the significance of the road. Harold Bloom wrote about how Frost himself even admitted that “It’s a tricky poem, very tricky” (Bloom “Robert Frost” 2). Frost, who was noted to be an excellent poet, derived this trickery on purpose. The trickery was part of the fun, making his literature require a little more critical thinking. It also provided a chance for the audience to get involved with the work. The poem was no longer just Frost speaking his mind; it became a group collaboration involving all …show more content…
Thomas Elwood Hart studied this theory and concludes that “Frost deliberately worked out patterns of association,” or in relation to “the metaphors, the irony, the parodistic component,” and other components (Hart “Frost's the Road Not Taken” 17). The metaphorical aspect is the most obvious because the whole poem is just one elongated metaphor. The irony comes from the fact that he has such a difficult time making the decision on which path to take, and in the end doubts that he will ever return to take the other path. What once seemed to be a difficult decision is now one that requires hardly any thought. Another hint of irony as well as a parodistic component is the fact that the poem “pokes fun at the Romantic character of his close friend Thomas” (“Road Not Taken” 12). Frost uses these different concepts to create a piece of literature that is simple on the outside, yet more complex as it is looked at more

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